Mike Tomlin Says Steelers ‘Won’t Push Panic Button,' But Vegas Already Has
By Ben Heisler
Pittsburgh Steelers' fans are ready to tear up their favorite team's futures tickets and throw them into the Allegheny River.
Pittsburgh enters Game 4 of the NFL calendar at 1-2; playing the role of the caboose of the AFC North division through the first three games. Despite an impressive road win to begin the year at Buffalo, things have gone south in a hurry, losing two straight games as home favorites to the Las Vegas Raiders and Cincinnati Bengals for the first time since 2018.
To make matters worse, Ben Roethlisberger is still recovering from a pectoral injury he suffered back in Week 2, and his accuracy so far is by far and way the worse of his career.
Congrats Steelers Nation, the current state of your team is now living equivalent of the "this is fine" meme!
At least Steelers coach Mike Tomlin is trying to keep the mood upbeat. According to WPXI's Jenna Harner, Tomlin feels the team can stay the course despite the season rapidly deteriorating around them.
"We're not going to push the panic button," Tomlin said. "We're not going to dramtically change who and what we are.
"We're not resistant to change for the purposes of getting better, but we're not going to be so unsteady we move away from the identity we work hard to develop."
Tomlin may not be panicing, but to quote Woody from the original Toy Story, "This is the perfect time to panic!"
The Steelers Can't Afford a Mediocre Defense with a Bad Offense
Pittsburgh goes back on the road and gets the joy of playing the Green Bay Packers and the reigning NFL MVP Aaron Rodgers at Lambeau Field. After the consensus line for this matchup opened at Steelers +3.5, bettors immediately pounded on Green Bay moving the line all the way up to 6.5 at WynnBET Sportsbook with a total of just 45.5 points.
Furthermore, oddsmakers have now moved the Cincinnati Bengals ahead of the Steelers in the odds to win the AFC North, coming in at +1000 compared to +1200 for Pittsburgh. Keep in mind that the Bengals opened the year hovering around +1800 to +2000 to win the division!
After starting off the season about as rough as possible with a 38-3 spanking from the New Orleans Saints, Rodgers and the Packers have won two straight against the Detroit Lions and San Francisco 49ers on Sunday Night Football last week in comeback fashion. Rodgers has thrown for six touchdowns in his last two games, and seems to have gotten Green Bay's offense back on track.
The defense for Pittsburgh should be improved from the last two weeks with T.J. Watt expected back. The Defensive Player of the Year favorite had two sacks and five quarterback hits in the Steelers' win back in Week 1 against the Bills.
Ultimately, the key rests of Roethlisberger. If he continues to miss his receivers on-target by more than 55%, it could be another disastrous day.
You can get the full betting breakdown for Sunday afternoon's matchup from our Iain MacMillan here.
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